Our inaugural TFS House scorecard which was released yesterday showed that the most conservative members of the Democratic Caucus were in fact members of the new class. The five most conservative members of the caucus according to our ratings were freshmen: Reps. Katie Edwards, Mike Clelland, Mark Danish, Jared Moskowitz and Dwight Dudley all voted against the liberal position on key issues 35% or more of the time. While three of the Reps. mentioned flipped formerly Republican seats in 2012 (Clelland, Danish and Dudley) Edwards and Moskowitz represent safe Democratic seats in Broward County which have been held by the party since the 1982 redistricting; over 30 years with minimal if any Republican opposition.   In the case of Edwards, she had openly touted her moderate credentials as a candidate and those who thought she was a progressive simply ignored her rhetoric and record but Moskowitz on the other hand gave little indication as to how conservative he would be in Tallahassee.

Danish and Dudley both flipped formerly Republican seats in 2012, but both seats were carried by President Obama and both seats are in large urbanized areas. Dudley’s seat which encompasses much of the 1992 to 2012 HD-52 includes many of St Petersburg’s middle class neighborhoods and has previously supported liberal candidates up and down the ballot since the early 1990s. Danish’s district is an area that was traditionally Republican but is trending towards the Democrats as the demographics of northern Hillsborough County change. The need to appear more moderate than a traditional liberal Democrat is apparent in this district but voting the wrong way on environmental issues and gun control for both Danish and Dudley make little sense.In comparison to these two freshmen members, Joe Saunders and Karen Castor-Dentel voted a perfect liberal line on the floor during session despite being in tricky districts. Castor-Dentel who defeated Rep. Scott Plakon in a tough race characterized by several Republican dirty tricks showed her strong progressive principles on several occasions during session. Saunders has emerged as a leader of the progressives in the House and is on track to be a good potential future leader. Rather than pander to the GOP leadership and “moderate” voters these two Central Florida based members stood strong on principle.

No legislative race victory in the past decade has meant more for the attempts to rebuild the Florida Democratic Party than did the defeat of Chris Dorworth by Mike Clelland. Dorworth, the Speaker Designee for the 2014-2016 term had become a poster child for an arrogant, reckless, and entitled GOP Legislative majority. This happened despite the support many fickle and spineless Democrats gave to Dorworth. Clelland however now has to manage reelection against former Rep.Plakon in a district that historically has been unfriendly to Democrats.

Plakon despite his hard-right rhetoric is more likable and ultimately more electable than Dorworth. That coupled with the reality that 2014 is an off-year election where Democrats traditionally turn out in smaller numbers means Clelland has to be balanced in how he approaches his votes. This however does not mean he should vote like a traditional “Blue Dog” Democrat but should pick and choose where to take strong progressive stands and focus heavily on constituent work. Yet his 45 rating on our scorecard is incredibly low and besides issues of reproductive rights, pension and education Clelland voted much like a Republican would.

It is important Clelland be re-elected. The take-down of Dorworth had massive symbolic value in sending a strong message to an arrogant, reckless majority whose promotion of a culture of cynicism and entitlement have contributed to destruction of Florida in many ways over the past decade. But Clelland’s voting record will do little insulate him from Plakon’s attacks so perhaps he should have voted with the party more often on key issues.

Also of note, newly elected Miami-Dade County Democrat David Richardson who is from a safe seat voted often against the leadership. Richardson’s voting record is far more conservative than his predecessors Richard Steinberg (who resigned in disgrace) and Dan Gelber.

With one session under the belt of these freshman members it will be interesting to see how or if they pivot into a more progressive posture going forward. Or perhaps they continue to vote in a way that drifts the Democratic Caucus towards the right and away from the shifts in attitudes throughout the state.